Destined for Power (20 page)

Mallory nodded to hide her surprise. It wasn’t Graham or Orson behind it. It was Ambrose. “Well, Ambrose is very attractive. And she is so very young. I’m not surprised she fell for his charms. It’s hard not to.”

“Well, it doesn’t matter. I am king and so powerful no one can touch me. Ambrose will keep his end of the bargain and supply more weapons to Stromia in exchange for the banking we can provide him. And I’ll be king and have you by my side.”

Liam reached for her and pulled her against him. “I read your letter. I’m glad you told me you loved me but were scared of the pressure of being queen. Don’t worry, I’ll teach you everything. I’ll be by your side telling you what to do. You know, I think Ambrose thought this would endear you to him. I think he wanted to make you First Lady. Too bad for him. You were destined to be my queen. Before I finally make you mine, I just have to make a quick phone call.”

Liam reached for her thigh and started stroking upward as he pressed a contact on his phone. “Is it true? Is my father dead?” Liam asked into the phone. “Good. Contact Black and Jonak. I want them to kill King Dirar by the time my plane lands in Stromia.”

Liam leered at her while he hung up his phone. “Now I think it’s time for us to pick up where we left off on our last limo ride.”

Mallory had had enough. “I don’t think so.” With a swift uppercut, she connected with the tip of his chin. His eyes rolled back into his head and he fell back against the seat. Mallory rolled down the window. “Did you get all that?”

Bowie grinned in the rearview mirror. “Sure did,” he said as he held up his phone. “I think Plan 32 was a great choice.” Bowie pulled the car to a stop in front of Liam’s plane at the airport.

“Do you need me to go with you?” Mallory shouted as Bowie moved the stairs to the plane door. Liam's pilot and flight attendant were still cozy in their hotel room nearby without a clue the plane was about to be confiscated.

“No, I’m good. Head back and take care of Ambrose.” Bowie locked the stairs into place and walked over to her. “It’s been fun, Westin. I look forward to next time.”

“There won’t be a next time,” Mallory said as she hugged him.

“There’s always a next time. Be good, kid.”

Bowie kissed her cheek and pulled Liam from the backseat. Mallory watched him carry Liam up the stairs of the plane and disappear. It was bittersweet saying goodbye to Bowie again. But now she had Ambrose to deal with.

Mallory pulled her phone from the strap at her waist and drove away from the airport.

“Ahmed, you need to be prepared. Liam issued the kill order on King Dirar.”

“We knew the king died but didn’t know the order had already been placed. I’ll let the king know, and we'll be waiting for him.”

“It’s Black and Jonak. I captured their first assassin but don’t know who else is on their payroll.”

“We’ve got it covered. Thank you. I think I’ll give their fathers a call. What about your father?”

“Ambrose hired the assassin to wound him and kill my father. His plan was foiled when Reid saved my dad. I’m on my way to take care of it now.”

“And Liam?”

“He's being taken care of as well.”

“Good. King Dirar and Prince Mohtadi thank you for your help.”

“It was good talking to you again, Ahmed.”

“I have a feeling it won’t be the last time either.”

Mallory grinned and hung up the phone. She had one more thing to complete, and then she could do what she wished she’d done all along . . . run away with Reid.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Reid paced his office floor while a paramedic left after dressing Ambrose’s wound. Senator Westin was on the phone with the president. The door opened and Mrs. Westin came running into the room.

“Where’s Mallory? She won’t answer her phone! What did you do to her?” she spat at Reid.

“She’s safe. I shot the person responsible before she could kill our Mallory,” Ambrose said quietly as Mrs. Westin rushed to his side.

“What are you talking about?” Reid asked. “Mallory had everything well in hand. She didn’t need you to save her. All you did was kill her lead.”

Mrs. Westin, in her gown and pearls, rounded on him. “It was more than you did. I always knew you were worthless.”

Reid straightened to his full height and stood staring down at Mallory’s mother. She’d always been the quiet one. Her vitriol surprised him. “Quite frankly, I don’t give a crap what you think.”

“Dear,” Senator Westin said as he hung up the phone, “we have been gravely mistaken in our beliefs. This young man saved my life. He jumped in front of a bullet meant to kill me.”

“To kill you? But I thought Ambrose was the one who was shot.” Her perfect makeup wrinkled slightly as she looked at the men in the room. She’d been dragged from the room so fast she didn’t see what happened.

“I would have been dead if not for Reid. And I fear I was wrong about him all those years ago as well.”

“But,” Ambrose whined, “Mallory is mine. I saved her.”

“I don’t think so, son. I don’t think she was ever meant to be yours,” Senator Westin said sadly.

“She’s mine!” Ambrose slammed his hand on the desk. He stood up and slammed his hand against Reid’s shoulder. The jarring motion caused a sharp pain from his broken rib, and Reid let out a hiss of pain. “Now that she’s done with this silly government stuff, she will take her place by my side and be the First Lady. She will serve me, and we’ll be the next John and Jackie.”

“See, that’s why she never wanted you. You can’t stand the idea of her being her own woman,” Reid shot back as he gave Ambrose a shove.

“She’s had enough time to gallivant around. She’ll settle down and do what she’s told. She is her mother’s daughter, after all. And no one, not even Mallory, can resist the power of the presidency. I can give her that. What can you give her? Money? Well, between my trust and hers, we’ll have plenty. But you would never be able to garner the kind of power we could have.”

“That may be, but I can give her love. I’m man enough to be proud of her instead of intimated by her success. See, that’s the difference between you and me. I want her to be happy, and I want to stand
beside
her for the rest of her life, not in front of her.”

“Thank you, darling. It’s one of the many reasons I love you.”

Reid turned to his side and saw Mallory leaning against the door with a smile on her face. “I love you, too,” Reid said as he rushed to kiss her.

“Mallory Westin! What are you wearing?” her mother interrupted.

“Stop it, dear,” the senator warned. “Mallory has been a government asset these past years. I’ve just finished talking to the president who filled me in. Our daughter is a hero for her service. She’s saved countless Americans and innocent civilians around the globe.”

Reid smiled at her father before wrapping Mallory in his arms and kissing her.

“We’ll see how long this lasts. Reid won’t be able to handle Mallory having more connections and more power than he has,” Ambrose spat.

Mallory stepped away from Reid’s embrace and placed her hand on the gun Bowie had given her. “Too bad you won’t be around to find out. You know, I had this interesting talk with Liam before he flew home. Remember, he left before you shot Tilley.”

Ambrose froze. “You talked to Liam?”

“Yes. Why don’t you tell my father how you banked on him dying and you being elected president? And while you are at it, why don’t you tell him how all your money has been transferred to banks in Stromia and how you promised Liam weapons as soon as you were voted into office.”

Her father stood quietly as he watched Ambrose. Reid blinked and her mother sputtered, “But Ambrose was shot.”

“I know. Clever, wasn’t it? He’d look like a hero for living and carrying on the campaign. He'd be a candidate Graham and Orson would be accused of trying to murder. Ambrose arranged for Tilley to shoot him in the shoulder. She was too good a shot to miss.”

“How do you know that?” Ambrose tried to laugh it off.

“Because I wouldn’t have missed,” Mallory said with a smile on her face. A hint of seriousness in her voice led everyone in the room to know she wasn’t joking.

“As if you have any evidence of such a crazy idea,” Ambrose sneered.

Mallory pulled out her phone and pressed a button. Liam’s voice filled the room and Ambrose went white. Her father turned red, and her mother fainted.

Reid stepped forward as Mallory turned off the voice recording. “You know, there is something I am better at than Mallory.” Reid punched Ambrose so hard his eyes rolled back, and he crumpled to the floor. “My right hook.”

“True. You always did have a nice hook.” Mallory winked at him. “Damien, he’s all yours.” Damien and three agents filed in from the hallway.

Reid saw the weight lift from Mallory. The mission was over. He and her father were safe, and now they could move on with their life—together.

“Marry me?” Reid asked with a grin on his face. He took both her hands and looked into her eyes. Relief, excitement, hope, and love shone through. “We’ve waited long enough. We’ve accomplished enough. And we know we love each other enough. Marry me and let me spend every day showing you how much I love and cherish you.” He saw a tear run down her cheek and he brushed it away. “Say yes. Marry me, Mallory. Together we have everything we need. I don’t care about your father or the money we’ve made. All I care about is us.”

“For crying out loud, Mallory, say yes,” her father laughed as he wiped a tear from his eye.

“If this is finally real and not just my dreams, then yes, yes, yes!” Mallory cried. Reid smiled and kissed her hard. He pulled her tight against him, not caring about the pain in his ribs as he deepened the kiss.

“Mallory, dear, ladies don’t kiss like that in public,” her mother murmured as her father filled her in after her swoon.

“How very right you are, Mrs. Westin,” Reid grinned in between kissing her. He bent down and scooped her into his arms. “We’ll just cut through the conference room on the way to my suite. No one will see us or hear very unladylike kissing.”

“Do hurry, Reid,” Mallory ordered.

“Yes, ma’am.” Reid unlocked the conference room door and hurried inside.

“Oh my God!” Reid and Mallory froze and gasped at the vision on the conference table.

“Hello, little missy. Good to see you lived. If you need Feng, it will be a little while.”

Mallory buried her head in Reid’s neck and started laughing. “I think we’re good, Feng,” Reid smiled. He looked between Feng and Shirley. “Um, please excuse my fiancée and me. Carry on.”

“Fiancée?” Shirley’s head popped up over Feng’s bare shoulder as Reid hurried from the room.

Mallory couldn’t stop laughing. She was happy. She felt as if she were a teenager again. The pain of the past fell away, and all the hope of the future shone bright as Reid unlocked the door to his room and carried her inside. He placed her gently in the middle of his bed as he stood and slowly loosened his tie. He kept his eyes on her and unbuttoned his tuxedo jacket, tossing it aside, followed by his shirt.

Reaching up, he undid the Velcro straps of his vest and let it drop to the floor. He kicked off his shoes, and Mallory couldn’t tear her eyes from his chest and the ridges of his stomach. He’d matured over the years. His body was thicker, stronger, and he seemed even more confident in his own skin. When his hand reached the button of his trousers, Mallory stopped comparing him to their first time. Instead, her eyes followed as he unzipped his pants and crawled naked onto the bed.

She smiled when he lay next to her and slowly started undoing the thigh strap and shoulder harness. They didn’t say anything as he helped her sit up so he could pull the shirt from over her head and unstrap her vest. He kissed his way around the bruise that had formed over her right breast as he reached behind to unhook her bra.

Mallory closed her eyes and felt the feather-light touches of his fingers slipping the bra from her arms before cupping her breasts in his hands. His teasing touches caused her to arch her back. Instead of giving her what she wanted, Reid pushed her back against the pillows with his kisses and slid his hand farther down. His fingers slid the tight fabric from her hips, and she kicked off her pants while his lips followed the path of his fingers. Mallory closed her eyes and arched her hips against his tongue as he pleasured her. Her fingers tightened on the sheets as she felt the orgasm building. She cried out his name and twisted the sheets as she tossed back her head and enjoyed the waves of pleasure rolling over her.

Reid lifted his head and crawled slowly on top of her. His paused, his erection at her entrance. With achingly slow movements, he ran his hand up her side to cup her face. Mallory instinctually nuzzled against him and placed a kiss on his palm before he claimed her lips in a searing kiss. Reid pulled his mouth from hers and looked down at her face. “I love you now and forever,” he said before sliding into her. Mallory’s mind clouded with pleasure. As she felt her body spiral out of control, she knew Reid would always be there to catch her.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Reid woke slowly. The shift between him and Mallory was palpable in the air. She was plastered against his side with her head on his chest and an arm thrown over his stomach. Gone were the outside influences preventing them from enjoying each other. Gone were the threats. Gone were the lies of the past.

Reid stroked Mallory’s long hair as he held her in his arms. He rested his cheek against the top of her head and cherished every moment he had with her. They weren’t going to leave the suite that day unless he could talk her into eloping. At least then he would have a stay of execution in having to confess all to his family. Yes, that was perfect: an elopement with a nice long honeymoon. He wouldn’t tell anyone where or why he was gone. They would just enjoy each other for as long as possible.

“I don’t care, Drake. Give me the freaking key!”

Reid’s eyes went wide. Elle? What was she doing here? He didn’t have time to wonder as a second later the door to his suite was thrown open.

Reid grabbed the bed sheet and pulled it over Mallory’s bare breasts. Mallory’s eyes popped open, and her whole body tensed, but Reid held her tight against him as he sat up to lean against the headboard.

“How could you?” Elle demanded as she stormed into his bedroom. She shot daggers at him and as if that weren’t bad enough, his whole family plus Shirley trailed in behind her.

“Me? You’re embarrassing Mallory. Get out!” Reid yelled. His grip on his temper was sliding. He was finally happy and now he had to deal with three, no,
five,
demanding women.

“She’s my best friend, not some simpering society type who just wants her picture in the gossip rags.” Elle’s hands were on her hips, and Drake was desperately trying to convince her this was none of her business.

“Listen to your husband and get out, Elle.” Reid grew impatient.

“You’re my brother!”

“And you’re my
younger
sister. That doesn’t give you the right to storm in here and dictate my love life,” Reid said threateningly. He loved his sister, but this was exactly what Mallory and he had feared since they were teenagers.

“Elle, this isn’t what it looks like,” Mallory stated calmly as she turned to face the closest thing to a family she’d ever had. She leaned against his chest with Reid’s arm around her.

“Isn’t what it looks like? Really, Mal, you’re going with that line?” Elle snapped.

“That’s enough!” Margaret clapped as she pushed forward. “Elle, I know you’re concerned for Mallory. We all are. But Reid would never hurt her. He’s loved her since high school. Isn’t that right, dear?”

Reid was shocked. He’d been so careful not to show his feelings. He could only nod at his mother who smiled happily.

“What?” Elle, Bree, and Allegra gasped.

“It was as clear as day they loved each other. What I don’t know is what happened at the end of summer that one year to change all the sneaking around you were doing,” Margaret said pointedly.

Reid looked to Mallory and let out a long breath. “Do you want to tell them?”

Mallory nodded. “It’s about time I did. Reid and I have been attracted to each other since I was sixteen. After graduation, we spent one wonderful summer together. Reid asked me to go to Europe with him, but my father stopped us. He threatened not only Reid’s scholarship, but also to rip apart Mr. Simpson’s company and send you all to jail for tax fraud if I ever saw Reid again.”

“Why, that son of a biscuit eater!” Shirley slammed her hand into her fist.

Reid saw his whole family stiffen in outrage. His sisters’ husbands all took a step backward, knowing the women were about to let loose. But Mallory held up her hand to stop them. “I know. I broke it off with Reid very harshly so he would never think he had a chance with me. Then I ran off to England to be a government asset.”

Allegra looked at her sisters and then stepped next to Elle. “What’s a government asset?”

“Um, welcome back from your honeymoon,” Mallory smiled meekly.

“Don’t change the subject. What have you not been telling me? I’m your best friend. Or at least I thought I was. Obviously,” Elle motioned to her and Reid in bed, “you didn’t feel the same way.”

Reid felt horrible for Mallory. He felt her shoulders slump, and he couldn’t stand it anymore. “Knock it off, Elle. Mallory is still your best friend. You’re not being a very good friend to her right now. Stop thinking about yourself and think about how hard this has been for Mallory. She lost her family. She lost the man she loved. She spied for the United States, ran covert operations in dangerous places, and had no one to talk to.”

“Is that true?” Elle asked quietly.

Mallory nodded. “I couldn’t tell anyone. If I were caught, well, it would make things very messy. I love Reid very much. Since he saved my father’s life last night, and Ambrose, the man my father wanted me to marry, turned out to be the bad guy . . . well, I think we’re in the clear to be together. And, Elle, I’m sorry if you can’t handle it. You’re my best friend. You all are my best friends,” Mallory said to the group standing at the end of the bed. “But I have lived in fear long enough. It’s time for me to be happy. Reid makes me happy. If you can’t handle that, then I will understand. But it’s not going to stop me from being with him.”

Elle let out a long breath. “I’ve been a bitch, haven’t I?”

Drake patted her shoulder. “It happens to the best of us, babe.”

“I’m sorry, Mallory. Reid, when Shirley called last night telling us she saw you carrying Mallory upstairs, I thought the worst. I thought of all the things that could go wrong instead of right.”

Shirley coughed and sucked in her dentures. “Did I forget to tell you that when he was carrying her up the stairs, he mentioned she was his fiancée?”

“Fiancée?” they all said together.

Both Reid and Mallory laughed at everyone’s shocked faces. “Yes, fiancée,” Reid said before picking up her hand and kissing it.

“Shirley! How could you leave that out?” Margaret asked as happy tears started to fill her eyes.

“Oh, I know. She was a little busy in the conference room. It probably slipped her mind,” Reid teased.

Everyone turned to look at Shirley and then each other when they noticed the blush on her cheeks.

“Shirley?” Margaret asked slowly. “What were you doing in the conference room?”

“I think the better question is
who
she was doing.” Mallory snickered. “Sorry, Shirley, payback’s a bitch!”

“Who?” The women gasped as Logan, Drake, and Finn took a sudden interest in the floor, but not before Mallory noticed their shoulders shaking with laughter.

Margaret clapped her hands. “Well, obviously we have a lot to catch up on. Family dinner tonight—including all our
whos
. Everyone be there at six. Now, shoo.” She pushed her kids out of the bedroom. “We have another wedding to plan, after all.”

“Quickly,” Reid called out. “I won’t wait more than a week to marry Mallory.”

“A week?” his mother cried in dismay.

“Come on, Mom. I know all of Mallory’s favorite styles. We’ll get everything ready for them tonight.” Elle smiled before running back into the bedroom and throwing her arms around Mallory.

“Now we really will be sisters. I love you. Both of you.” Elle kissed her brother and squeezed Mallory’s hand before running out the door yelling at Drake to call the musicians for the band.

Mallory and Reid sat staring at the door for a long time. Finally she turned to him and slumped against his chest. It was over.

“That was very traumatic,” Reid mumbled as he pulled her against him.

“At least it’s over. Our relationship has not only been accepted, I think they actually are happy about it,” Mallory said as she ran her hand over his light smattering of chest hair.

“Happy, shoot they’re thrilled. Mom’s married us all off. Elle, Bree, and Allegra get the sister they’ve always wanted, and I get you,” Reid said, grabbing her and pulling her onto his lap.

Mallory sat on top of him as he leaned against the headboard. “I’m pretty thrilled about it, too. I have a house in St. Barts. No one knows about it.”

“Why, Mallory Westin, you’ve been keeping secrets,” Reid teased before pulling a nipple into his mouth.

“And if you keep it a secret, we can honeymoon someplace completely private where no one will be able to find us,” Mallory moaned.

“I think you need to convince me to keep it a secret.”

Mallory grinned. “Only if you do everything I say.”

“Give up power to you?” Reid smirked. “Any time. Have your way with me.”

Mallory lifted her hips and took him inside her in one motion. The smirk fell from Reid’s face as his hands tightened on her hips. He moaned in pleasure, and it was her turn to smile. Who said sharing power couldn’t be fun?